Americans witnessed the most hotly contested primary season in recent memory, one that started with 17 candidates and was whittled down to only a few. Marco Rubio was one of Donald Trump’s most formidable opponents, and while he was ultimately beaten by a huge margin, Rubio refused to directly support him in the nomination.

Rumors began to swirl when both Rubio was asked to speak at Trump’s convention. Trump’s penchant for risk-taking was obvious when he made this move.

And with risk comes HUGE rewards.

Rubio spoke via video feed instead of being in Cleveland in person because he is running his own hotly contested Senate re-election campaign in Florida. WSJ reports:

He offered praise for Mr. Trump, who he said “takes seriously the threats from Islamic radicals” and would curb taxes and rebuild the military. “After a long and spirited primary, the time for fighting each other is over,” he concluded. “It’s time to come together and fight for a new direction for America.

Rubio moved the Republican party one step closer to complete unity for Donald Trump, and party unity is a huge boost toward defeating Hillary Clinton in November.